sorry to have an opinion, it won't happen again.
Someday I'll win the lottery and buy a 60 so I guess I can be cool again.
Ever heard of Moab 4x4 outpost? Rock Tools suspension?
- Thread starter 99RedTJ
- Start date
Someday I'll win the lottery and buy a 60 so I guess I can be cool again.
I had smaller tires, less motor, and probably way less weight and I broke lots and lots of 44 parts. Guess I'm just not as well versed in science as some people....never was much for school or things that required thought.
One day I'll be as smart though, having done all the trails in moab and will have as much wheeling experience as you--then i'll just run a d30 and 42's cause I'll be a wheeling god who bends the rules of physics to my will and laugh's in the face of friction and rotational force as my small axled rig with huge tires and angry motor traipses up the pathetic ledges of Upper Proving Grounds (RIP, but since I'll be an infallible wheeling god I can go there as I please) mockingly as I pass all the lesser wheelers who had to put 60's under their rigs because they just didn't understand physics or wheeling well enough to keep d44 axles and internals from breaking on their girly 6 cylinder 3000lb tube framed sissy-rigs and had to make up for it with bigger axles. Just think how inexpensive hard core rigs would be if everyone knew what you knew! I'm sure you're stockpiling 44 housings waiting for the day everyone catches up to you and begins selling off that heavy useless 60 crap to get into the real action...44's! If you could buy stock in 60's I would hold a short position now that I know how the market is going to turn--but you've probably already figured that angle too. I mean, after all supply and demand is merely a function of economics and economics is a science--and we've already established your mastery of the sciences. It's buku bucks for you--if only I had thought of it first.
ok, all kidding aside
I actually didn't break much for about a year on my rig, but once I stepped up to some stickier tires and started tagging around with stupid unlimited buggies I began to eat up shafts pretty fast. I think i went through 18 that last year, along with 8 joints, and at least 20-25 hubs (I switched to superwinch hubs cause they would 'usually' break before the shaft would and slugs are easy trail spares and repairs). I know since I sold it the good Dr has cracked the diff and broke a knuckle. At any rate, some people wheel differently and for different reasons. I've seen people make d30's last for a long time with 37's on a 5000lb rig (not locked in the 30 though) and I've seen 2800 lb buggies on 37's without water and 6 banger motors break cromo 60 stuff. Once you roll a couple times and get over that initial fear of it then you start opening up a bit and trying some more difficult stuff and, at least for me, thats when parts started breaking. everyone is different though.
Cody
still just having fun, please don't take my smart ass too personally
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I had smaller tires, less motor, and probably way less weight and I broke lots and lots of 44 parts. Guess I'm just not as well versed in science as some people....never was much for school or things that required thought.
One day I'll be as smart though, having done all the trails in moab and will have as much wheeling experience as you--then i'll just run a d30 and 42's cause I'll be a wheeling god who bends the rules of physics to my will and laugh's in the face of friction and rotational force as my small axled rig with huge tires and angry motor traipses up the pathetic ledges of Upper Proving Grounds (RIP, but since I'll be an infallible wheeling god I can go there as I please) mockingly as I pass all the lesser wheelers who had to put 60's under their rigs because they just didn't understand physics or wheeling well enough to keep d44 axles and internals from breaking on their girly 6 cylinder 3000lb tube framed sissy-rigs and had to make up for it with bigger axles. Just think how inexpensive hard core rigs would be if everyone knew what you knew! I'm sure you're stockpiling 44 housings waiting for the day everyone catches up to you and begins selling off that heavy useless 60 crap to get into the real action...44's! If you could buy stock in 60's I would hold a short position now that I know how the market is going to turn--but you've probably already figured that angle too. I mean, after all supply and demand is merely a function of economics and economics is a science--and we've already established your mastery of the sciences. It's buku bucks for you--if only I had thought of it first.
ok, all kidding aside
I actually didn't break much for about a year on my rig, but once I stepped up to some stickier tires and started tagging around with stupid unlimited buggies I began to eat up shafts pretty fast. I think i went through 18 that last year, along with 8 joints, and at least 20-25 hubs (I switched to superwinch hubs cause they would 'usually' break before the shaft would and slugs are easy trail spares and repairs). I know since I sold it the good Dr has cracked the diff and broke a knuckle. At any rate, some people wheel differently and for different reasons. I've seen people make d30's last for a long time with 37's on a 5000lb rig (not locked in the 30 though) and I've seen 2800 lb buggies on 37's without water and 6 banger motors break cromo 60 stuff. Once you roll a couple times and get over that initial fear of it then you start opening up a bit and trying some more difficult stuff and, at least for me, thats when parts started breaking. everyone is different though.
Cody
still just having fun, please don't take my smart ass too personally
It is a long said quote on this forum that if you don't have 60s front and rear don't EVEN make the trip to Moab.....
- Location
- Bountiful, land of rocks
I think Moab 4x4 Outpost does quality work. I've had people I know break their stock rigs down there and they feel VERY well taken care of by that shop. They endorse it wholehartedly. I have had ONE experience with them and it was positive. I needed a uber strong TJ draglink for my XJ (I bent ANOTHER draglink--surprise, surprise) and they hooked me up with a brand new unit for a VERY reasonable price.
Here's my take on that for whatever it's worth (and totally off subject). I made the best of the rig I had (XJ with stock D30 and D35) while looking for a cost effective way to upgrade if I had issues. Guess what, I did have issues (popping 297-760 joints/shafts almost at will) after I moved up to 35" tires (those really crappy MT/R tires that don't hook up at all--Oh, and I chucked the venerable D35 for an XJ D44 rear).
I had a LOT of fun with that pile, and would love to go through that whole process again. However, my driving habits and trail selection have changed and honestly so has the sport. It didn't make sense to build another XJ (unibody and crappy stock axles when I'm considering 36-40" tires) so I stepped up to a 'Jeep' with all Chev drivetrain components.
So if I'm breaking the part that is known to break in a D44 (short of chromo shafts and CTMs---and even then you'll see some broken parts), why would I 'upgrade' to a rig with a D44 front? The only thing that made sense to me was to find a front D60 (I looked into making a 'hybrid' front out of a D44 with 60 joints and outers) just for the economics of it. In my experience, the stock D60 joints and axles are very similar in strength to the alloy/CTM setup in a D44 but with the D60, if I have issues, I still can upgrade to alloy/CTM and be MILES ahead of the D44.
If I tell you I'd just buy a front D60, it's because that's my opinion. Run what you want, but I think you'll end up with a front 60 if you keep running harder trails. Just an FYI, I bought my duallie front D60 for CHEAPER than what I see a lot of D44 fronts for. I paid a little for SRW hubs, but I'm into an operable D60 for about the price of a reverse D44 front. Very happy with what I have and GLAD I have the bigger front. It's nice not to worry about it on the trail. I just worry about drivelines and transfer cases.
(I bent ANOTHER draglink--surprise, surprise) and they hooked me up with a brand new unit for a VERY reasonable price. Here's my take on that for whatever it's worth (and totally off subject). I made the best of the rig I had (XJ with stock D30 and D35) while looking for a cost effective way to upgrade if I had issues. Guess what, I did have issues (popping 297-760 joints/shafts almost at will) after I moved up to 35" tires (those really crappy MT/R tires that don't hook up at all
--Oh, and I chucked the venerable D35 for an XJ D44 rear). I had a LOT of fun with that pile, and would love to go through that whole process again. However, my driving habits and trail selection have changed and honestly so has the sport. It didn't make sense to build another XJ (unibody and crappy stock axles when I'm considering 36-40" tires) so I stepped up to a 'Jeep' with all Chev drivetrain components.
So if I'm breaking the part that is known to break in a D44 (short of chromo shafts and CTMs---and even then you'll see some broken parts), why would I 'upgrade' to a rig with a D44 front? The only thing that made sense to me was to find a front D60 (I looked into making a 'hybrid' front out of a D44 with 60 joints and outers) just for the economics of it. In my experience, the stock D60 joints and axles are very similar in strength to the alloy/CTM setup in a D44 but with the D60, if I have issues, I still can upgrade to alloy/CTM and be MILES ahead of the D44.
If I tell you I'd just buy a front D60, it's because that's my opinion. Run what you want, but I think you'll end up with a front 60 if you keep running harder trails. Just an FYI, I bought my duallie front D60 for CHEAPER than what I see a lot of D44 fronts for. I paid a little for SRW hubs, but I'm into an operable D60 for about the price of a reverse D44 front. Very happy with what I have and GLAD I have the bigger front. It's nice not to worry about it on the trail. I just worry about drivelines and transfer cases.
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
I like my Dana 44, aka "the biggest turd of a front axle in a rig".
Nothing wrong with running whatcha got. If it breaks, fix it. If it breaks often, time make some changes; axle, tires, driving habits, etc. I get tired of hearing how much 44's suck, they work fine in the right application. A Dana 60 would be overkill for my rig and the 44 was 2x cheaper than a similar 60. Once I'm breaking it often, I'll look into some changes. Until then I'll keep wheelin my yet-to-be-broken Dana 44.
Nothing wrong with running whatcha got. If it breaks, fix it. If it breaks often, time make some changes; axle, tires, driving habits, etc. I get tired of hearing how much 44's suck, they work fine in the right application. A Dana 60 would be overkill for my rig and the 44 was 2x cheaper than a similar 60. Once I'm breaking it often, I'll look into some changes. Until then I'll keep wheelin my yet-to-be-broken Dana 44.
actually, he was on your side. He was alluding to a theory developed by people that are overly sensitive and in need of constant validation that some of the older and/or more active members on the board are biased towards 60's and if you don't run them you are not a real 4-wheeler or part of "club rme". Thinly veiled sarcastic jab but i'm sure the targeted people read, understood, and didn't care.
at any rate, people wheel differently and for different reasons. I'm sure the majority of people that run 44's do so without problems. If you're trying to push your own limits and find yourself on obstacles in which finesse and crawling doesn't get it done and you have to commit to it with some wheel speed, you're going to find the weak spots pretty quick. I know you may have a mastery of the physical sciences never before encountered by man, but even Stephen Hawking couldn't avoid that one.
I had a budget rig and I tested and found the limites of what a 44 could do for my style of 4 wheelin. I couldn't afford to take the next step and go to a 60 so I sold the rig and am starting from scratch. It sucks to break, and the best way not to break and be stuck running from town to town and pointing fingers at people that didn't think ahead for you is to be prepared with equipment suitable for the type of terrain you wheel and the way you wheel it. For many a 44 is that, for many it is not. That is all.
Cody
Thinly veiled sarcastic jab but i'm sure the targeted people read, understood, and didn't care.
Cody
Izzat me? If so, then you're correct.
Here's my take on that for whatever it's worth (and totally off subject). I made the best of the rig I had (XJ with stock D30 and D35) while looking for a cost effective way to upgrade if I had issues. Guess what, I did have issues (popping 297-760 joints/shafts almost at will) after I moved up to 35" tires (those really crappy MT/R tires that don't hook up at all
I was actually with you when you busted a 297 front one time. Before it broke I kept thinking to myself....."I can't believe he hasn't broken that front u-joint yet". I agree with you. If I was going to upgrade my 30 and didn't have to worry about the unibody I would go with a 60 front.....in fact I ran into a sweet XJ in moab 3 weeks ago that had 60s front and rear and had zero problems with the unibody (he had done similar strengthening to mine) so who knows....Like you I like the idea of not breaking it.....of course if its not your axles like you said it will be your xfer case, driveline, steering, etc.... I think I just talked myself into selling my jeep.
It seems like it is getting harder and harder to hit the trails as the kids get older and my work gets busier.
- Location
- Bountiful, land of rocks
............ I think I just talked myself into selling my jeep.
I've had the same thoughts on selling (and even have a good financial reason to do so--investing the $$$$), but...............................but it's SO worth it when you can get out on the trail. Mine's paid for and it's staying unless someone wants to pay me what it's 'worth'.
Call it psychotherapy or whatever you want, but EVERY successful person I've ever met has had at least one 'vice'......whatever it is (they know how to have fun in their chosen 'thing').Like I said, sorry to have shared my opinion/experience, obviously since I am not a more active and/or older member I don't fit in.It won't happen again.He was alluding to a theory developed by people that are overly sensitive and in need of constant validation that some of the older and/or more active members on the board are biased towards 60's and if you don't run them you are not a real 4-wheeler or part of "club rme". Thinly veiled sarcastic jab but i'm sure the targeted people read, understood, and didn't care.
.
Cody
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
That is completley wrong, you are welcome here no matter when you joined, how popular you are or how your rig is built. Don't sweat Cody, he has an opinion just like you do.
shortstraw8
Well-Known Member
I think Moab 4x4 Outpost does quality work. I've had people I know break their stock rigs down there and they feel VERY well taken care of by that shop. They endorse it wholehartedly. I have had ONE experience with them and it was positive. I needed a uber strong TJ draglink for my XJ
I agree one year I pulled my steering box bracket from my frame and took it to them they fix it for free and even showed us some of his cad designed suspension cause he liked the way my brothers TJ was set up.
so he can sweat me but I can't give it back? I am confused. And not just cause I have a dana 44.
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
Not at all, I think Codys response to your opinion is far beyond what was required. Give it back all you want, I hate hearing people say how RME & some of it's members are scaring them away from participating.
Not scared -Even with a dana 44 (including 6 spare shafts,spare hubs, spare knuckles,ujoints, all on my rig) and a bad experience at the outpost. out.
- Location
- Bountiful, land of rocks
Sounds heavy! I've been taking out warn premium hubs on my last 2 trips... gotta love the lifetime warranty!
...grow thicker skin...
look at Cody's sig line.... that's just who he is.. he's gonna flip sh!t, but you either let it roll off... because it's most the time meaningless, or, flip it back... like Greg said.